The All Progressives Congress, APC, Edo state has read the pediatric composition by one Timothy Osadolor, who addressed himself as
Deputy National youth leader-elect of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP on the visit to the Code of Conduct Bureau in Abuja by the 14 members-elect of the Edo assembly, to present a petition, demanding an investigation of the Clerk of the House, a public officer, Alhaji Audu Yahaya Omogbai.
Ordinarily, the unguarded and misleading write-up would have been better ignored but since the author wrote from a position of infantile ignorance while seeking to be recognized by his new paymasters, it deserves some enlightened response if only to put the records straight and save him from further ridiculling himself and his drowning party, the PDP.
Mr Osadolor does not know that on 17th June 2019, instead of the 24 members-elect of Edo Assembly, only 9 of them were clandestinely, ‘inaugurated’ with the Clerk of the House, Alhaji Audu Yahaya Omogbai presiding, behind closed doors at the very odd hour of 9.30 pm, contrary to Section 91 of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. 14 others were left out.
The Clerk of the House, Alhaji Audu Yahaya Omogbai
concealed the vital information as to the date, venue and time of the inauguration of the 7th session of the assembly from the 15 others, at the time. This is evident from the statement which was released to journalists at exactly 1.39am on 18th June 2019 to confirm that the ‘inauguration’ took place.
So for two years and nine months since this date, over 1.7million voters including Governor Obaseki and his deputy’s state constituencies and that of the Oba of Benin and the Otaru of Auchi, Edo state’s foremost traditional authorities have had no representation at the Edo Assembly, albeit as the Audu Yahaya Omogbai 9-member Edo Assembly has been holding ‘plenary’.
What the14 members-elect went to the Code of Conduct Bureau, Abuja to do, which is public knowledge, was to simply submit a petition, demanding an investigation of the conduct of the Clerk of the House. A public officer, Alhaji Audu Yahaya Omogbai chose the members-elect to be sworn in on 17th June 2019.
The legislators met with the chairman of CCB, Prof. Mohammed Isah, in his official capacity, gave him their petition, dated November 16, 2021 and titled, “Complaint of gross abuse of powers and the precipitation of crisis at the Edo State House of Assembly by Alhaji Audu Yahaya Omogbai-Clerk of the Edo State House of Assembly”, which they all signed.
The details of this visit is in the public domain. But the very myopic Osadolor instead of informing himself went gaga with his wild accusations seeking to drag the names of the immediate past National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and Rt Hon E.J. Agbonayinma, who is a member of the CCB board into a matter that is purely outside their control.
The petition is merely asking the CCB to find out whether a public officer, Alhaji Audu Yahaya Omogbai, as Clerk of the House, by his actions in deliberately and mischievously excluding the 15, did not violate the provisions of Articles 1 and 9 of the Code of Conduct for Public Officers as contained in the 5th schedule to the Constitution?
The CCB in exercise of its powers to investigate the conduct of public servants is also being asked to find out whether by concealing the material information as to the date, venue and time of the inauguration of the 7th session of the EDHA from a majority of the members-elect of the House, whilst he conveyed this vital information to a select few, who at that material time were perceived to be loyal to the Governor of the state, he has not abused his powers and apparently displayed conflict of his personal interest with that of Edo state and the national interest?
From the above, it is clear that the jobless Mr Osadolor only made an unfortunate, amusing and indecent vituperation. Without doubt such a desperate attitude should have been applied with some level of decorum befitting his pending position. But his plight is understandable because it was made in his bid to warm himself into the hearts of those who sponsored his entrance into one of his party’s unsung national post to get some patronage after a long sojourn in political irrelevance back home.
We also sympathize with the Edo PDP for having such a misfit and intellectually deranged representative at the national level. It is unfortunate that all they could lay their hands on was such a lame nonentity as an emblem.
Edo must move forward
Signed
Victor Ofure Osehobo,
Assistant State Publicity Secretary,
APC, Edo State.
osehobofure1@gmail.com